A Hard Knock Life
by ellsbells10
Summary: Lux has had a hard life. She acts out a lot  even more than in the show  because of her past. She meets Cate for the first time and they both end up in jail...
1. Drunk and Disorderly

**Preface: I couldn't fit everything necessary for this story to make sense in the summary. I was watching a rerun of the 1st season of the O.C. the other day. For those of you who haven't watched it, the main character, Ryan, had an alcoholic mother who abandoned him and her boyfriend beat him after he was arrested for stealing a car with his older brother. Ryan's a good guy, but he's a little rough around the edges because of his childhood. He smokes, drinks, gets into fights, etc. After Ryan's mom abandons him, a nice family adopts him. It kind of reminded me of Life Unexpected and I started wondering what would have happened if Ryan was Cate's child or if Lux acted a little more like Ryan. In this story, Lux is Cate's daughter, but Lux acts out more than she does in the real show. Some of Lux's behavior will be out of character. I've changed some events to make the story work. Cate and Ryan are together, but they're not engaged. Lux hasn't turned sixteen yet. The story starts on the day of Drink A Date (which is obviously happening earlier than it did in the show because Lux isn't yet 16).

* * *

**

Lux's alarm clock went off at 5:00 am on the dot.

Tasha groaned when she heard the obnoxious beeping sound coming from the bunk bed below her. "Why do you always have to wake up at the crack of dawn to listen to that stupid radio show?"

Lux hastily shut her alarm off before it woke any of the other girls in the small room up. The room currently housed five foster kids. It was just one of many rooms in the Sunnyvale Home for Girls.

"Sorry," Lux whispered to her best friend. She grabbed her portable radio from underneath the bed and put headphones on to listen to Morning Madness with Cate and Ryan.

Tasha jumped down from the top bunk. She was already awake and knew she wouldn't be able to go back to sleep. She settled in next to Lux and grabbed one of the earpieces from Lux.

"You don't actually drink your date, People," Cate's voice emanated from the radio.

Cate and Ryan began giving the details for their event, Drink A Date, which was that night.

Tasha nudged Lux. "What the hell is Drink A Date?"

Lux smirked. "It's an event they have every year for young singles. The radio station pays for people's drinks and then it's kinda like speed dating."

"Free alcohol? Where do I sign up?" Tasha said.

"You don't sign up. You just go to the bar they're going to be at," Lux explained.

"So let's go," Tasha said eagerly.

"One problem," Lux said.

Tasha looked at her friend expectantly.

"We're not twenty-one," Lux pointed out.

"When has that ever stopped us?" Tasha pointed out. "Anyway, the bar they're going to be at is _the_ place for underage drinking. They don't check IDs."

"That's good since we don't have any," Lux said.

Tasha smiled slightly.

* * *

John Bazile entered Open Bar and glanced around the bar. He frowned when he saw the place was a mess. Empty cups and knocked over cups sat on a beer pong table.

John's expensive shoes were sticking to the floor. He shook his head, wondering when was the last time his son had cleaned.

John started for the stairs that led to Baze's loft apartment. He expected his son's apartment to be a pigsty, but he hadn't expected it to be quite this bad.

Dirty plates with unrecognizable contents and empty take-out cartons lined the kitchen counter. Something smelled. John wrinkled his nose. He zeroed in on the overflowing trash can as the offending object.

John stormed over to Baze's room. He paused at the door, contemplating knocking. Knowing his son, it was entirely possible John would walk in on Baze and a girl.

John remembered it was afternoon and most people were working. Unless his son had managed to find a girl as unmotivated as him, Baze would be alone. John threw the door open.

Baze cringed when light from the living room shone into his otherwise dark bedroom. He shielded his eyes and looked up. "Dad?"

"I'm here for the rent for the bar," John said.

Baze sat bolt upright. "About that, I'll get it to you, but I'm gonna need a little more time."

"I won't hold my breath. You don't have $3,200 dollars today. You're not gonna have it tomorrow," John muttered.

John surveyed his son's bedroom with distaste. A large pile of dirty laundry took up most of the floor. A dirty cup and plate sat on Baze's nightstand.

Baze frowned. His dad didn't believe in him. He hadn't in a long time, Baze knew.

The last time Baze actually remembered his dad being proud of him was when he was starting quarterback in high school and his team won the State Championship. That was over fifteen years ago.

"If I'd known you were going to take the building I gave you and turn it into a bar…" John trailed off, his tone disappointed.

"Yeah, well, you said to do what I loved," Baze said, raking a hand through his wavy brown hair.

"Pay the rent within a week or I'm taking the bar," John said, giving his son a hard look.

* * *

"What are you wearing?" Tasha asked Lux.

Lux studied the limited contents of the closet she shared with Tasha, debating between jeans or a dress. She wanted to look older than her sixteen years. She pulled a black strapless dress from her closet and held it up. "This."

Tasha rummaged through the clothes on her side of the closet and chose a black halter dress with studs on it. "Are you wearing heels?" She asked.

Lux shook her head. "Heels hurt my feet," she said simply.

The girls dressed and then stood in line for the bathroom they shared with the entire floor of girls. When it was their turn, they spread tubes of lip-gloss and tubs of eye shadow out on the bathroom counter and began applying make-up.

They heard someone banging on the door. "You've been in there for fifteen minutes! What are you guys doing in there?"

"Don't worry about it!" Tasha said angrily.

The girls took their time finishing their make-up before emerging from the bathroom. Several older girls who had been waiting in line gave them dirty looks.

Lux felt a tug on her dress and glanced down. Her expression softened when she saw a young girl. "Hi," Lux said, smiling.

"You look pretty," the little girl said softly.

Lux's smile widened. "Thank you. You look pretty, too."

The little girl beamed proudly.

* * *

"I need to get paid," Jaime complained, giving Baze a hard look.

Jaime, Baze and Math sat in lawn chairs on the rooftop of Open Bar.

Baze raked a hand through his hair. "I know. We need to get butts in the barstools."

Jaime nodded toward the bar across the street. "They've got a line out the door."

Math nodded knowingly. "They're hosting Drink A Date."

Baze made a face. "Drink a what?"

Jaime snickered.

"Drink A Date. It's an event hosted by K100," Math said.

Jaime narrowed his eyes. "And you know about it because?"

Math blushed slightly. "This girl from high school is one of the radio hosts."

Baze smirked. Math was huge in high school. He hadn't had any girlfriends and he hadn't had very many girl friends. "Wait a minute. What girl from high school?"

Math's cheeks burned. "Cate Cassidy."

Baze nearly choked on his beer.

Math and Jaime stared at him.

Baze looked down. "Something in my throat," he fibbed.

"You guys went to high school with this chick?" Jaime asked.

Baze nodded.

"So ask her to hook us up, have the next event here," Jaime suggested.

Baze raked a hand through his hair. "Nah. I didn't know her well."

The three guys stood at the railing, watching as more people lined up across the street. The line was wrapping around the block and it was still early.

Jaime grinned. He gestured toward two young girls in line. "Do they look twenty-one to you?"

Baze shook his head.

"They look like they're in high school," Math commented.

Jaime stared at Baze. "If that bar were to get shut down, where would all those people go?"

"Here," Baze said as realization dawned. He retrieved his cell phone from his pocket and called the police to report underage drinking.

* * *

Cate made her way to the bar with purpose. "Vodka and tonic," she said simply to the bartender.

The bartender grinned boyishly, checking her out as he prepared the drink.

Cate barely noticed the bartender's gaze. She accepted the drink and tipped him.

Cate took a drink from the glass and smiled slowly.

Cate frowned when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned, expecting a fan or male admirer, but instead saw Alice.

"Hey, come on," Alice said. "We need you on stage."

Cate quickly downed her drink and set the empty glass on the bar before joining Ryan on stage.

"Helloooo Portland!" Ryan's voice boomed. The bar erupted in applause.

"My co-host, Cate, is around here somewhere. Unless, of course, she already started drinking," Ryan spoke into a microphone on the stage. "Hey, you guys remember last year's Drink A Date? We almost had to rename it Drunk As Cate."

Cate hastily joined Ryan on stage.

"Yeah, this year we're offering a date with Cate. At the end of the night, we'll draw a name out of a top hat and one lucky guy will win a date with Cate. Of course who knows where that could lead. Except maybe couples' therapy," Ryan quipped.

"And for all you single ladies out there," Cate said loudly into her microphone, "you guys can also win a date with Ryan." Cate turned to Ryan and smirked. "But I use the term win loosely. Now, come on! Let's get the party started, shall we?"

"And the drinks flowing," Ryan chimed in. "So, OK, here's the deal, People. Everyone get a drink, find a person, if you like them, nurse your drink."

"And if you don't like them, just down it! Come up to the stage, we'll set you up with someone else. People get a lot better looking as the night goes on," Cate said. She cast a sidelong glance at Ryan and smiled mischievously. "Isn't that how Alice met her husband?"

Alice smiled good-naturedly.

"We got a couple of great guys behind the bar. They'll hook you up. In the meantime, let's get dating!" Ryan said.

Ryan put his hand on Cate's lower back and guided her off the stage. Cate shot him a warning glance and he held up his hands in defeat. No one could know they were dating.

They schmoozed fans for awhile. It didn't take long before Cate needed another drink. She maneuvered to the bar.

Cate stood just behind a young girl. She waited impatiently while the girl ordered.

"What are you drinking?" The bartender grinned cockily at the girl.

"Vodka and tonic," Lux replied, smiling slowly.

Cate looked up, surprised. The girl not only looked young, she sounded really young, too.

Blonde curls cascaded down the girl's back. Her face gave her away. It made her look young and innocent despite heavy make-up.

The girl felt Cate's eyes on her and fixed Cate with a piercing stare, a sassy expression on her face. The girl's eyes were strikingly blue.

Cate felt as though she'd seen this girl before, but couldn't place her. Cate racked her brain, trying to figure out how she knew this girl.

"Take a picture. It lasts longer," Lux said sarcastically, shifting uncomfortably under Cate's gaze.

Cate opened her mouth slightly in shock.

Lux turned back to the bartender, smiling seductively. "Thanks," she said, as she accepted her drink.

Cate ordered another drink and tipped the bartender. As she made her way back toward the stage, she searched the bar for the young girl. It was driving her crazy that she couldn't place her. Cate knew she'd seen that girl before. She just didn't know where.

Cate joined Ryan. She glanced down at the two top hats-one contained the names of guys hoping to win a date with her, while the other contained the names of girls who wanted to go out with Ryan. A line had already formed with people wanting to enter the contest.

"Another one for me," Cate commented haughtily when a guy dropped a slip of paper in her hat.

She scanned the line, trying to figure out if there were more guys or girls in line. Cate inhaled sharply when she noticed the girl from the bar standing toward the front of the line.

Cate doubted if the girl was even twenty-one. Why would she enter a contest to win a date with Ryan? He was thirty-two. He was old enough to be her father.

No, not her father, Cate corrected herself. Not unless he'd also had a child in high school and neglected to mention it. But he was definitely old enough to be the girl's older brother. Much older brother. Bottom line was he was too old for her.

Cate glared at the girl when she approached the front of the line. "Isn't he a little old for you?"

Ryan smirked. Cate was jealous. "Who are you calling old?" He teased.

"Please, she's probably not even legal," Cate shot back. She turned to Lux. "How old are you?"

"Don't worry about it." Lux rolled her eyes and dropped her name into the hat.

Cate retrieved the slip of paper and glanced down at the name. _Lux_. It didn't sound familiar. It was an unusual name.

"Lux?" Cate said.

Lux turned back and gave Cate an odd look.

"Lux what?" Cate asked.

Lux smirked. "Just Lux."

The brunette with Lux smiled slightly. "Like Madonna."

Cate rolled her eyes as the girls made their way back to the bar. She discarded the slip of paper with Lux's name into a nearby trash can.

Ryan smirked. "Jealous?"

"No. I just don't want you to get arrested for robbing the cradle," Cate retorted.

Ryan grinned cockily. "And you're jealous."

Cate gave Ryan a dirty look. "I need a drink."

All of a sudden, the atmosphere in the bar changed. The noise died down. Fans who had been enjoying themselves a few minutes ago hastily scrambled toward the exit.

Cate looked up, confused, and saw two policemen in the entrance.

Ryan appeared beside Cate and put an arm around her protectively.

"What's going on?" Ryan asked.

Cate shook her head. "I don't know." She frowned. "Where's Alice?"

They found Alice outside the bar.

"This is bad. This is really, really bad," Alice said.

"What happened?" Cate asked.

"The bar's being shut down for underage drinking," Alice said. "During Drink A Date."

Alice frowned. "Open Bar," she mumbled.

Cate followed Alice's gaze across the street.

"I'm gonna go talk to the manager. Maybe we can move the event across the street," Alice said.

Cate and Ryan sat down on the sidewalk.

"Hey! Watch it! I'm a minor!"

Cate looked up. She immediately recognized Lux.

A cop patted Lux down and cuffed her before leading her to the back of the police car.

"I knew she wasn't twenty-one," Cate said triumphantly.

Alice hurried over. "The owner of Open Bar just came through for us big time."

They retrieved their signage and the top hats from inside the bar. Alice made an announcement that the event was moving across the street. Then they headed over to Open Bar.

"Can I get a vodka and tonic?" Cate asked as she rummaged through her purse for a few dollars to tip the bartender. She glanced up and her mouth opened in shock when she locked eyes with Baze. "What are you doing here?"

"It's my bar," Baze replied as he poured Cate's drink.

"Of course it is," Cate muttered. She gave Baze a once-over and frowned. "You haven't changed a bit. Except your hairline."

Baze ran a hand through his hair self-consciously and checked Cate out. "You have." He grinned cockily. "You look good."

"My God, are you seriously hitting on me?" Cate cried out, glaring at him.

"That's not what you said in high school," Baze retorted.

Cate accepted the drink Baze had made for her and promptly threw it in his face.

Baze grabbed Cate's arm and led her outside. "OK. Look, I need to rake it in tonight. I need this event. You need to chill."

"I need to chill?" Cate repeated, her tone deadly. "I need to chill! You're unbelievable!"

"This is the opposite of chilling," Baze said.

Cate rolled her eyes and moved toward the entrance to Open Bar.

Baze stopped her, grabbing her arm again.

Cate pushed Baze away and he stumbled backward.

A police officer approached them. He frowned. "Are you two married?"

"No!" Baze and Cate said in unison.

The officer turned to Cate. "Have you been drinking tonight?"

Cate's eyes widened. "Uh, I've had a drink or two."

"Will you take a breathalyzer test?" The officer asked.

"What? No!" Cate made a face.

"You're going to have to come with me," The officer said.

"What? Why?" Cate demanded, horrified.

"Drunk and disorderly conduct," The officer replied.

"I'm not disorderly," Cate protested as the cop led her toward his car.

"You shoved that gentleman. You're belligerent. You're slurring. You refused to take the Breathalyzer test," the officer said.


	2. And So We Meet Again

Lux and Tasha settled into the backseat of the police car. Neither was very concerned that they'd just been arrested.

They knew the drill all too well. They'd call Fern, their social worker. She'd pick them up. After delivering a lecture on staying out of trouble, she'd drop them off at Sunnyvale.

It's not like they were in a rush to get back to Sunnyvale.

The cop escorted them into the police station and instructed them to call their parents.

Tasha and Lux exchanged a glance.

"I don't know my parents' phone number," Lux said. She watched the officer's face, enjoying his reaction. She had a problem with authority figures. She was being difficult on purpose and enjoying every minute of it.

The cop's brow furrowed in confusion. He stared at Lux, blinking. "Parent or guardian," he said after a moment.

Lux tried not to smile. She dialed Fern. It went straight to voicemail, which wasn't surprising considering it was after midnight. "Her phone's off for the night," she concluded.

The cop sighed. He turned to Tasha. "Call your parents."

Tasha smirked.

"Or guardian," the officer added quickly when he saw Tasha's facial expression.

Tasha shook her head. "Lux and I have the same social worker. If she didn't answer when Lux called, she's not gonna answer when I call."

The cop nodded toward a bench. "Sit."

"Do I look like a dog to you?" Lux asked, annoyed at being ordered to sit like a pet.

The officer glared at Lux. "I need to make a few calls. You can sit there or in a cell."

Lux sighed and sat down on the bench. Tasha joined her.

When the cop returned, Tasha asked, "Can we get out of here?"

He shook his head. "Not without a parent or guardian. Juvenile hall doesn't have room for you two. You're gonna have to stay here."

The officer led Tasha and Lux to the holding cells. He found an empty one for them. He didn't want to put two minors in with dangerous criminals.

"Can we lose the bracelets?" Lux asked, holding up her cuffed hands and scowling.

The officer freed their hands. Lux rubbed her wrists where the cool metal had dug in.

Tasha glanced around. "At Sunnyvale we share a room with five kids. In jail we get a cell to ourselves. Is this supposed to discourage us from a life of crime?"

Lux laughed. "What? It's not working?"

"If you don't get emancipated, this is Plan B," Tasha said.

"I'm gonna get emancipated," Lux said firmly.

* * *

Cate could not believe she was currently sitting in the back of a police car.

She was a successful radio host. Or at least she had been. Cate sighed. She'd been arrested in the middle of an event she was supposed to be hosting. Alice would be going crazy, Cate knew.

Even if Alice got over it, Cate had no idea how the station felt about employing criminals.

She was a good kid. Aside from the whole pregnancy debacle. She'd never so much as gotten detention in high school. She'd been Valedictorian.

This was all Baze's fault! Every time he got anywhere near her, things went horribly wrong, Cate fumed.

And he'd just stood there smirking as Cate was arrested. He could have jumped in at any time. It was the least he could do after everything he'd put Cate through in high school. The very least. Cate shook her head furiously.

The cop parked behind the police station and escorted Cate in. She used her one phone call to dial Ryan's cell and got his voicemail. She sighed. He probably couldn't hear his phone ringing because the bar was so loud.

"This is just great," Cate muttered as she slammed the receiver down.

The cop guided her to a jail cell. Cate was thinking her night couldn't possibly get any worse when the cop put her in a cell with Lux.

At least the cell didn't have hardened criminals, Cate thought dully. It was just Lux, the brunette girl who had been with Lux at Drink A Date and Cate.

Lux's friend was sleeping. Cate didn't know how she could possibly sleep at a time like this.

Cate sighed and took a seat beside Lux.

Lux smirked. "Aren't you supposed to be hosting an event?"

"Isn't it past your bedtime?" Cate retorted. "How old are you anyway?"

Lux scowled. "Don't worry about it."

Cate turned to face Lux. As soon as did, she realized why Lux looked familiar. Lux had Baze's eyes.

Cate closed her eyes and leaned back against the cement wall. She pictured Baze standing behind his bar, Cate's vodka and tonic dripping down his face and soaking through his T-shirt. Baze had wiped his face with a towel and glared at her with piercing blue eyes. She'd always liked his eyes.

Cate opened her eyes and looked at Lux.

Lux was staring at her with the exact same blue eyes. She must be his sister or something. "Do you know Nate Bazile?"

The color drained from Lux's face. Her eyes widened in shock and she gasped audibly. "How do you know that name?"

Cate's eyes narrowed. "You know him?"

"You could say that," Lux said dryly. She didn't actually know him. She just knew that she was comprised of half his DNA.

Lux's sixteenth birthday was the following month. She could get emancipated from the foster care system. But her birth parents hadn't signed all the forms they'd needed to when they'd given her up for adoption. They were still technically responsible for her.

Fern had told her she would need to get their signatures before her emancipation hearing. Lux knew Fern would take forever to take care of it, so she'd sneaked a peek at her file.

Nate Bazile had been listed as Lux's birth father. Lux hadn't told anyone that. Not even Tasha. All Tasha knew was that Lux was trying to get emancipated. So how could Cate Cassidy possibly know?

"You're his sister?" Cate asked, smiling triumphantly. No wonder the kid had gotten on Cate's nerves. She must take after Baze.

Lux barely stopped herself from telling Cate it was none of her business. She wanted to know more about her father. Cate obviously knew him. Lux would probably be able to get more out of Cate if she was nice.

"Something like that," Lux said vaguely. "How do you know him?"

"We went to high school together," Cate said, a hint of bitterness in her voice.

Lux's eyes lit up. "What was he like?"

"Cocky. Selfish. A spoiled brat," Cate began listing off all of Baze's worst qualities.

Lux frowned. "Spoiled? Was he rich or something?"

Lux had never been able to understand how her parents could just give her away like she was nothing. Like she didn't matter. But she'd wanted to believe they'd done it because they couldn't take care of her. Because they didn't have any money. Or something. She'd needed to believe that. If her dad was rich, it meant they just didn't want her.

Cate nodded.

Lux hesitated. "Do you know who his girlfriend was in high school?"

She had her dad's information from her file, though she didn't know that she wanted to meet him after hearing Cate's description. But she still didn't know who her mother was and she needed to get both of their signatures.

Cate rolled her eyes. "He didn't have a girlfriend. He was a player."

Lux frowned. "Do you know who he was playing about sixteen years ago?"

Cate stared at Lux, her mouth open in surprise, as she began to connect the dots.

Cate looked into Lux's eyes. She saw the same thing she'd seen earlier. Lux's eyes were exactly like Baze's. Cate definitely hadn't been imagining it.

Cate had assumed Lux was his sister, but that couldn't be right. The questions Lux was asking didn't make sense. She acted like she didn't even know Baze.

"You're not Baze's sister, are you?" Cate asked, narrowing her eyes.

Lux shook her head.

The color drained from Cate's face. She looked as though she'd seen a ghost.

"Lux, how do you know Baze?" Cate asked, though she was pretty sure she knew the answer.

Lux hesitated. After a moment, she said, "I don't."

"You said you did," Cate pointed out, trying to meet Lux's gaze.

Lux's expression hardened. She glared at Cate. "I lied. So sue me."

"You're awfully interested in Baze for someone who doesn't know him," Cate said suspiciously.

Lux looked up at Cate. They weren't going anywhere anytime soon and Cate obviously wasn't buying her lie.

"He's my dad," Lux admitted.

Cate swallowed. Tears stung her eyes as she looked at the daughter she'd given up nearly sixteen years ago. She hadn't thought she'd ever see her daughter again. She didn't know what to do.

Cate bit her lip. Should she tell Lux the truth? You don't just tell people you're their mother while they're sitting in a jail cell, Cate thought desperately.

"I lied, too." Cate took a deep breath. "I told you Baze and I went to high school together."

Lux nodded, looking up at Cate curiously.

"But I didn't tell you how well I knew him. Baze and I, we slept together," Cate said.

Lux's eyes widened. She stared at Cate in shock.

"On the night of Winter Formal. Which was about sixteen years ago," Cate continued.

"You're my mom?" Lux gasped.

Cate nodded slowly. "How are you? Are you OK?"

"I'm great," Lux said sarcastically, glancing around the jail cell pointedly.

Cate looked down. "Do you need anything?"

Lux started to say no, but then she remembered the form. "I need you to sign a form."

Cate looked at Lux quizzically.

"I can't get emancipated without it," Lux explained.

Cate narrowed her eyes. "Emancipated? From your adoptive parents?"

Lux shook her head. "No. Look, it's a long story. If you can just-"

"I have time," Cate interrupted.

"I wasn't adopted," Lux said, staring at the ground.

Cate frowned. "They told be you'd be adopted. They told me there were these waiting lists"

Lux looked up, surprised. "Well, I don't know if you knew, but I was born with a hole in my heart."

Cate's expression was pained.

"I'm OK now," Lux said quickly. "But I needed surgery to fix it. Baby on the operating table isn't really a selling point." Lux attempted to look nonchalant. Like she didn't care that she'd never been adopted.

Cate looked unconvinced. "If you weren't adopted, where…" She broke off, unable to ask the question without losing it. She was trying not to cry.

"Sunnyvale," Lux answered the unasked question.

Cate's brow furrowed in confusion.

"It's a home for girls," Lux explained.

Cate nodded slowly.

"Cate Cassidy? You've made bail." The cop's voice intruded on the private conversation.

Cate looked up in surprise. It felt like it had been hours since Cate called Ryan.


	3. Me Against the World

Cate half-wished Ryan hadn't come.

She wanted more time with her daughter. She _needed_ more time with her daughter.

The officer cleared his throat. "Ms. Cassidy?"

He was looking at her strangely. He was waiting for her to follow him, she knew. She glanced wistfully at Lux before getting to her feet.

Cate was completely overwhelmed with emotions. She didn't know what she was feeling. She didn't know what to think. What to do.

She had to go out there and face Ryan. He would ask questions. Questions she didn't know how to answer.

He would surely ask why she was arrested in the first place. Baze, Cate thought angrily. Just thinking about him made her angry all over again.

Ryan would be able to tell something was wrong the moment he saw Cate. He had an uncanny knack for that.

Cate had learned really early on that the only person you could trust and depend on in life was yourself. Baze had taught her that lesson and she'd never forgotten it. Since age sixteen, Cate has pushed people away because she knew that if she let them get close, they could hurt her. If she kept people at arm's length, she wouldn't get hurt again.

And then there was Lux. Cate couldn't just leave her daughter in jail. But there was no way Cate could arrange for Lux's bail without Ryan noticing. What would she say? What reason could she possibly give for bailing a fifteen year old out of jail?

Cate took a deep breath as the officer held open the door leading to the outside world. To Ryan.

Ryan's face was buried in his hands. When he looked up, Cate could see the concern in his eyes. He reached her in two long strides and enveloped her in a hug, rubbing her back comfortingly. He pulled back and studied her. He frowned. "Are you OK?"

Cate pulled away and looked down, unable to meet his gaze. "Yeah."

Ryan's frown deepened. "What happened?"

Cate ignored him. "I just, I have to take care of something." She approached the desk. "Can I arrange for Lux's bail?"

The officer looked up in surprise. "I'm afraid that's impossible. A minor can only be released to a parent or guardian."

Cate bit her lip. She could feel Ryan's presence behind her. She knew he was listening. She closed her eyes. It was now or never. "She's…my daughter." Cate stammered, her voice shaky.

Ryan stared at Cate open-mouthed.

The cop looked equally surprised. He narrowed his eyes. "She said she doesn't have parents."

Cate stared at the ground. "She's my daughter," she repeated.

When Cate finally looked up, the cop looked unconvinced.

Cate sighed. "What? Do I have to take a DNA test?"

The officer blushed slightly and went to get Lux.

"Since when do you have a daughter?" Ryan asked.

"Since now," Cate said shortly. "Can we not talk about this right now?"

Cate moved away from Ryan, but he caught her arm. He held it gently, but firmly enough that she couldn't escape his grip. Cate gritted her teeth as she turned to face him.

"We need to talk about this," Ryan said firmly.

"There are a lot of things you don't know about me," Cate said. She looked up at Ryan with fear in her eyes and waited for the rejection she knew was coming.

"I know you," Ryan said, his voice laced with hurt. He stared at her expectantly.

Cate sighed. "It was high school."

"Were you one of those girls who got knocked up on prom night?" Ryan asked incredulously.

"It was Winter Formal," Cate corrected, her cheeks burning. The secret she'd kept since high school was coming out and there was nothing she could do about it. Baze would know soon, too. When Lux asked him to sign the form, Baze would know that Cate had their child without even telling him. This was a mess and Cate didn't know how to clean it up.

Ryan's eyes widened. "What did you do?"

"I gave her up," Cate said with just a hint of sadness in her voice.

They both looked up when Lux emerged.

Cate watched a flicker of recognition on Ryan's face. He nudged her. "Hey, is that the underage kid from Drink A Date?"

Cate nodded slowly.

The officer returned Lux's belongings. She waited impatiently.

Lux headed for the door. Cate and Ryan followed close behind.

Once they were outside, Lux rummaged through her purse until she came up with the form she needed Cate to sign. It was at the bottom of her purse. She'd been carrying it around for over a week, trying to work up the courage to go to her father's apartment.

She didn't want to see her parents. She knew they didn't want her. If there was any doubt in her mind, it was gone now.

Cate had answered more than just the questions Lux had asked outright. When Cate told Lux that Baze was rich, she'd also told Lux that they could have found a way to keep her, to take care of her if they'd wanted to. They just hadn't wanted to.

Lux took a deep breath and put her game face on. She was used to being unwanted. No one had ever wanted her. She was used to rejection. Foster parent after foster parent had told her she wasn't good enough. She didn't need them. She didn't need any of them. She wouldn't let any of them see that they got to her. She wouldn't give them the satisfaction. Especially not her birth parents.

"I just need your signature." Lux handed the form to Cate.

Cate hesitated for just a moment before signing the form. When she returned it to Lux, their hands touched for a split second. Cate instantly felt a connection. Almost a magnetic pull toward her daughter.

Lux stuffed the form back in her bag. She didn't really know what to say.

After an awkward silence, Cate asked, "Do you need anything?"

"No. This is pretty much it," Lux replied.

"A ride? Do you need a ride?" Cate asked hopefully.

Lux shook her head. "I'm gonna wait for Tasha."

"Your friend?" Cate asked.

"Yeah," Lux replied.

Cate frowned. "You can't stay out here all night. Your friend won't be released until morning."

Lux rolled her eyes. "It _is_ morning."

Cate stared at Lux, realizing she was right. It was 2:38 am. Still, it would be hours until Tasha was released and it was freezing.

Cate watched in a mixture of shock and horror as Lux pulled a cigarette out of her bag and took a long drag.

Lux felt Cate's gaze. "You want one?"

"No," Cate said quickly. She hesitated. "It's just, are you sure you should be smoking? I mean, you're only fifteen."

"Cate, no offense, but I've been without a mom for fifteen years. I don't need one now." Lux struggled to keep her voice even. Cate would never know that for the better part of fourteen years, Lux had hoped her mom would come back for her.

Now Lux just wanted to get emancipated. She was better off on her own than with any of the incompetent grown-ups she'd been with in her fifteen years.

Cate nodded slowly. She turned to Ryan. "We should probably go."

Ryan frowned, but unlocked his car and held the passenger door open for Cate.

Cate noted the look of disapproval on his face. "She won't listen to me. She doesn't want anything to do with me. What do you want me to do?" She asked defensively.

"I don't know, Cate. Probably a little more than what you just did," Ryan muttered. He drove her home in silence.

Cate hesitated when Ryan pulled to a stop in front of her house. "Aren't you coming in?"

Ryan just shook his head.

Tears stung Cate's eyes as she walked into her house alone. She'd just been rejected twice in one night. Her daughter and her boyfriend. That was a new record. Even for her.


	4. Little Did He Know

Cate tossed and turned all night, her stomach tied in knots.

She remembered Lux as she'd left her, sitting on the hard sidewalk smoking a cigarette. Lux had been shivering. No wonder, Cate thought. The kid was wearing a dress and it was freezing outside. Lux had looked so alone.

Cate made a snap decision. She drove to the police station, though she didn't know what to do or say to Lux.

Cate frowned when she saw the empty sidewalk in front of the police station where she'd left Lux. She parked and got out of her car.

"Excuse me. Is Lux here?" Cate asked the officer behind the desk in the police station. It was a different cop. He didn't recognize her.

"Lux…?" The officer said, needing a last name.

Cate realized she didn't know what Lux's last name was. She blushed slightly. "Um, Bazile?"

The officer shuffled through the files on his desk. "There's no one here with that name."

"Is Tasha here?" Cate tried again.

"You mean the kid who was arrested for underage drinking?" The cop asked. He'd released her to her social worker just a few minutes ago.

"Yeah," Cate replied.

"You just missed her," the officer said.

As Cate returned to her car, she saw Lux's cigarette butt on the ground. She'd missed her chance. Lux was gone. Cate would never see her daughter again.

Lux would get Baze's signature and get emancipated, Cate thought sadly.

Cate knew what she had to do. She had to tell Baze about Lux. Lux couldn't show up to get his signature before Cate talked to him.

When Cate entered Open Bar, Baze was playing beer pong. He saw her and sauntered over.

"Look who made bail." Baze smirked.

Cate glared at him. "Yeah, no thanks to you."

"Hey, you came into my bar, threw a drink at me and went crazy," Baze said defensively.

Cate narrowed her eyes. "I did _not_ go crazy!"

"Yeah, 'cause all the sane girls throw drinks at me when I give them a compliment," Baze said sarcastically.

Cate rolled her eyes. "I need to talk to you." She looked at Baze, her expression serious. "It's important."

The doorbell rang.

"Yeah, hold on," Baze said, making his way toward the door. "What is up with the beer guy being early?"

Baze opened the door and winced when morning sunlight hit his eyes. He shaded his eyes and frowned when he saw a young girl. "You're not the beer guy."

"Hi. I, uh, need a signature from someone. Probably not you."

Cate's heart skipped a beat when she heard Lux's voice. She'd wanted to tell Baze about Lux before Lux showed up on his doorstep. This was not good.

"Who's that?" Math called out from the beer pong table.

"A girl scout," Baze replied.

"I love those! I'll get two boxes!" Math called.

Cate rolled her eyes. She hurried to the door.

"I'm, um, not a girl scout," Lux said, slightly annoyed. "I'm looking for…" Lux trailed off when she saw Cate standing behind Baze.

"This is actually what I wanted to talk to you about," Cate said, shifting uncomfortably.

"Girl scout cookies?" Baze said, raking a hand through his brown hair.

"No!" Cate said angrily. "This is Lux. Our daughter."

"Our what?" Baze said, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Daugh-ter," Lux said slowly, enunciating the syllables. "You and Cate had a kid. I'm that kid."

Baze turned to Cate. "I thought you took care of it," he stammered.

"Excuse me?" Lux said angrily, punching Baze on the shoulder.

"Ouch." Baze rubbed his shoulder. "Ugly choice of words. I'm sorry."

Lux shook her head. She didn't know much about her birth parents, but based on what little she did know, his choice of words didn't surprise her at all. "Sorry to disappoint you, but she didn't take care of it," she practically spat out. "I'm here. I'm very much alive. And I need to get your signature." Lux held out the form.

"You never even told me we had a kid!" Baze yelled at Cate, his tone accusatory.

"Why would I?" Cate retorted. "You wouldn't even admit she existed!"

Lux watched as her parents began shouting at each other. She shook her head in disbelief. It never ceased to amaze her that she was more mature than most grown-ups. She cleared her throat. The screaming stopped and her parents slowly turned to face her.

"You guys can kill each other for all I care, but first I need your signature. My emancipation hearing is in a week. If I don't get your signature, I'm going to have to spend another two years being bounced around crappy foster homes," Lux said.

Tears stung Cate's eyes. She fumbled around her bag, feeling for a pen, and handed it to Baze.

Baze looked around helplessly for a hard surface to write on.

Lux rolled her eyes and turned around so he could use her back.

Baze signed the form, folded it and handed it back to Lux.

Lux stuffed the form back in her bag. "Thank you! Now you can go back to being at each other's throats," she muttered. With that, she turned on her heel and left.

"Lux!" Cate called out after her, but Lux didn't stop. Cate didn't know if it was because she didn't hear or because she didn't want to.

Lux heard Cate calling her and quickened her pace. She didn't want to see her parents ever again.

She'd known them for less than twenty-four hours. Her dad had pretty much confirmed that he wished she'd never been born. He may have been rich, but hadn't wanted to keep her. He hadn't even wanted Cate to have her.

Little did he know that Lux had often wondered why her mother hadn't gotten an abortion. Sometimes she'd even wished her mother had.

Lux had been in some really bad foster homes. On her darkest days, she'd wished she'd never been born.

And then there was Cate. Cate acted like nothing had happened, like she hadn't done anything wrong. She'd asked if Lux needed anything. _Yeah, I needed a mother_, Lux had wanted to say. But she didn't want Cate to know Lux had needed her, had wanted her.

Now Lux was almost sixteen. She didn't need them anymore. She sure as hell didn't need Cate telling her what to do. Who did Cate think she was telling Lux she shouldn't be smoking? Cate had given the right to tell Lux what to do up sixteen years ago, Lux thought angrily. Lux lit another cigarette and took a long drag just to spite Cate. She hated being told what to do by anyone, but Cate telling her what to do really rubbed her the wrong way.

* * *

Cate turned back to Baze. "What do we do now?"

"I don't know, Cate," Baze muttered. "I'm still trying to get over the fact that I have a kid."

"That's what happens when you use a condom that's been in your wallet for two years," Cate shot back.

Baze glared at her. "You should have told me."

Cate nodded dully. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right.

It would have been difficult to tell him she decided to have their child since he'd pretended he didn't even know who she was after they slept together, but she should have found a way, Cate knew.

"She has your eyes. Lux. I always really liked your eyes," Cate said softly.

Baze poured himself a drink. "Vodka and tonic?" He asked, remembering what she'd ordered the night before.

Cate nodded, surprised he remembered.

Baze mixed the drink. He held it just out of reach. "Are you gonna throw it at me?"

Cate gave him a dirty look. "Not unless I'm provoked."

Baze handed her the drink warily.


	5. The Feeling's Mutual

"I see you turn sixteen tomorrow," the judge said, glancing down at Lux's file.

"Yes, and I'll be able to be emancipated. Get my GED. Get a job," Lux replied.

Lux heard the door to the courtroom open and then shut loudly. She frowned and looked over her shoulder. Her frown deepened when she saw Cate making her way through the courtroom. What was Cate doing there?

"Is this your case worker here?" The judge nodded toward Fern.

"Yes, your honor," Fern replied. "I haven't been with Lux long. She tends to change hands a lot."

The judge frowned. "Yes, I see that. You've been in seven different foster homes." She fixed Lux with a harsh stare.

"That's not really my fault," Lux said defensively.

"Oh? And whose is it? Surely you're not saying its the seven different families who've tried to take you in?" The judge said.

"No. I mean, I wanted a good home. The State of Oregon just hasn't been able to provide me with one," Lux shot back angrily.

This was unbelievable. The State had placed her with abusive alcoholics and creepy pedophiles and this judge had the nerve to blame Lux. Lux balled her hands into fists at her sides.

"So you have no permanent place of residence as of today?" The judge asked.

"Well, as soon as I'm emancipated, there's a studio not far from my school," Lux said, struggling to keep her voice even when she wanted to scream.

How stupid was this judge? Of course Lux had no permanent place of residence. What, was she supposed to go out and sign a lease for an apartment before her hearing? And then what? Lux would have been responsible for an apartment if she didn't get emancipated.

"You're going to afford an apartment? On what income?" The judge asked skeptically.

"I have three thousand dollars in the bank," Lux replied.

The judge sighed. "Who is going to co-sign your rental agreement?"

Lux rolled her eyes. "That's the whole point of getting emancipated! I won't need anyone to co-sign!"

"No landlord is going to rent to a minor." The judge shook her head.

"I'll co-sign, your honor!" Cate said loudly.

Lux turned around and stared at Cate in surprise. Maybe Cate being there wasn't the worst thing.

"Come on, you bailed her out," Baze whined. "Let me sign the thing."

On second thought, her parents were acting as immature as ever, Lux thought angrily as she watched them argue loudly.

"Who are these people?" The judge demanded.

"They're…my birth parents," Lux said helplessly.

The judge flipped through Lux's file and looked up. "Sir, you own your own business?"

Baze and Cate exchanged a confused glance before Baze turned back to the judge. "Yes, your honor."

The judge's gaze shifted to Cate. "And you're a radio talk jockey?"

Cate nodded.

"Catherine Cassidy and Nathan Bazile are still legally your parents," the judge told Lux.

"Actually, they're not. I had the forms signed," Lux protested.

"Those signatures were neither witnessed nor notarized," the judge pointed out. "I'm going to be very straight with you. I am not granting you emancipation. I'm releasing you into their temporary joint custody."

Lux stormed out of the courtroom, Cate and Baze close behind.

"Well, that was the opposite of getting emancipated," Lux fumed.

How could this happen? Lux went to court to be emancipated from incompetent grown-ups, not be placed in the custody of her birth parents! The birth parents who hadn't wanted her. Lux swallowed the lump in the back of her throat. If they didn't want her, she didn't want them.

She'd prefer to go back to Sunnyvale, but the judge hadn't even asked Lux what she wanted. Shocking, Lux thought sarcastically. No one ever cared what she wanted.

No, Lux had learned really early on in life that if she wanted something, she had to go out and get it because no one else would. You had to take care of number one.

Cate glanced at Lux. "We need to figure out what it is we're gonna do." She looked at Baze pointedly. "Like the living situation for example."

Baze stared at Cate. "It took me six months to talk the guys into buying a futon from Ikea. I think a fifteen year old-"

"Almost sixteen," Lux interrupted with a twinge of annoyance. They were the ones who had her. Why was it so difficult for them to remember her birth date?

Her parents ignored her and continued arguing, their voices getting louder and louder. Lux shook her head in disbelief. Just when she thought her parents couldn't be any more immature if they tried, they proved her wrong.

Lux whistled. "Time out!"

Baze looked up in surprise.

Cate stared at Lux.

"Obviously none of us want this," Lux said. She shook her head. "Just tell the judge you won't do it."

"It's not that I don't want this," Cate protested.

"Hey, you didn't want to be stuck in foster care until you're eighteen," Baze pointed out.

Lux made a face. "No, I wanted to be emancipated," she said slowly. "My life brings new meaning to the phrase we don't always get what we want."

Cate studied the angry teenager glaring at her and chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. "We can figure something out."

* * *

"This is it. This is home," Cate said, helping Lux carry her bags into the hallway of Cate's one bedroom house.

Lux raised her eyebrows. "This is your idea of figuring something out?"

Cate sighed. "If you don't want to be here, you can stay at Baze's."

"You might want to run that by Baze first." Lux smirked slightly. Baze had made it pretty clear that her staying with him wasn't an option. At least he was being honest, Lux thought.

Cate was acting like she wanted Lux here when deep down they both knew the truth. Cate only took Lux in because the judge forced her to.

Tears stung Cate's eyes. "Is that what you want?"

Lux rolled her eyes. She didn't know how many times she had to tell these people that what she wanted was to be emancipated before it sank in.

Lux shook her head. "I'll stay here for a few days." She knew Fern would schedule a home inspection later that week. She could request to go back to Sunnyvale then.

Cate frowned. "For a few days?"

"My social worker will schedule a home inspection for sometime this week," Lux said knowingly. "We can tell her that the judge forced this on us, that it's not what any of us wanted."

Cate took a deep breath. "It's not that I don't want it. I mean, I wasn't expecting it, but we can make it work…if you want to."

Cate's eyes were wide with fear, her mouth a thin line as she waited for her daughter's response.

Lux looked doubtful. "Let's just see how it goes."

Cate smiled slightly.


	6. Full of Surprises

Lux groaned when a loud ringing woke her up. She rubbed her eyes groggily.

The ringing didn't stop. What was it? It was louder than a phone. And more obnoxious. Lux stood up and walked toward the source of the noise.

Lux found Cate standing in the smoke-filled kitchen with the smoke detector wailing loudly.

"What is that?" Lux made a face as she peered at the charred toast on the kitchen counter.

"Your breakfast," Cate said miserably.

Lux raised her eyebrows. She hadn't expected Cate to cook for her. Or, try to cook anyway.

"Who can't make French toast?" Cate asked helplessly.

Lux smiled slightly. "It's OK. I don't eat breakfast anyway." She noticed the mug of coffee Cate was drinking and added, "But I wouldn't say no to coffee. Where are the cups?"

Cate poured a mug of coffee for Lux. "Do you want cream or sugar?"

"No. I drink it black," Lux replied. She took the cup and sat down at the kitchen table.

Cate poured a bowl of cereal for herself and joined Lux at the table.

"Aren't you a little old to be eating Cookie Crisps?" Lux smirked.

Cate smiled slightly. She finished eating and rinsed her bowl out in the sink.

Cate scribbled her cell phone number on a pad of paper. She grabbed a twenty-dollar bill from her purse. "Here's money for lunch. My cell phone number. If you need anything, just call." Cate smiled. "I'm going to work."

Lux frowned slightly. She hadn't expected Cate to give her money. Or cook for her. Why was Cate trying so hard? She was being extraordinarily nice considering a judge had pretty much forced her to take in the unwanted kid she'd given away sixteen years ago.

"Wait, how am I getting to school?" Lux asked as Cate headed for the door.

Cate stopped in her tracks. That hadn't even occurred to her. She couldn't take Lux. Cate was already late for work.

Cate sighed. She'd have to call Baze. He was the last person she wanted to ask for help, but she didn't know who else to call.

"Hey!" Baze said.

Cate frowned. "Are you drunk?"

"No. I'm just happy…to hear from you," Baze lied.

"Well, how happy would you be about driving Lux to school?" Cate asked hopefully.

* * *

Cate hurried into the radio station. She slipped into her chair and put her headphones on.

"You're late," Ryan observed.

"I had to figure out how to get Lux to school," Cate explained.

Ryan stared at her quizzically.

Cate rolled her desk chair closer to his. "I'm going to take care of her," she said, smiling slightly. She put her hand on Ryan's. "And I'm really hoping you'll help me. You're right. You know me. And I know you. You're amazing. I love you."

Ryan smiled, meeting Cate's gaze. "I love you, too." He kissed her softly.

* * *

Lux waited on the front porch. She laughed when a cab pulled up.

Lux got in the back of the cab between Baze and one of his friends. The cab was a dead giveaway that Baze was still drunk from the night before, but Lux didn't need the cab to tip her off. As soon as she saw her dad, she knew he was trashed.

Baze's eyes were drooping. He was grinning widely. "Hey," he said, slurring slightly.

"Hey," Lux said, trying not to laugh. She had a feeling she would actually like Baze if he weren't her dad.

Lux turned to Baze's friend. He was good-looking, she noticed. She smiled seductively. "I'm Lux."

Jaime grinned. "Jaime."

The cab turned the corner, causing Lux to slide into Jaime. Lux took her time scooting back to the middle.

"Sorry," Jaime mumbled.

"I'm not," Lux replied suggestively.

Baze frowned. He knew when girls were flirting. He was usually the one they were flirting with.

But he didn't know why his kid was flirting with his roommate, who was twice her age. He also didn't know why it bothered him so much.

"Flirt with someone your own age," Baze told Lux.

"I like older guys. I think it's because I have daddy issues," Lux retorted.

Baze stared at Lux in shock. He opened his mouth and then closed it. He had no idea what to say.

Lux smirked.

The cab pulled up in front of Longfellow High School.

"I feel like I should give you some fatherly advice. Words of wisdom," Baze said.

"This should be good. Words of wisdom from a drunk who lives in a bar," Lux said.

"I live above a bar," Baze corrected. "What time should I pick you up?"

Lux rolled her eyes. "Three o'clock. Here's some actual words of wisdom. Take two aspirin and hydrate."

Baze frowned. "You shouldn't know that."

"You'd be surprised what I know," Lux said. She turned on her heel and headed for the school building.

* * *

Baze was waiting in front of Longfellow when Lux emerged from the building at three o'clock.

"How was school?" Baze asked.

Lux rolled her eyes at the standard question adults asked when they didn't know what else to talk to kids about. "Boring," she said shortly.

They rode the rest of the way in silence, neither really knowing what to say to the other. Baze parked in front of his bar.

Lux stared at him quizzically. "Am I walking to Cate's?" She asked dryly.

"Cate, she had some stuff to do. We're gonna hang out here for awhile," Baze explained.

Lux followed Baze into his loft apartment and set her book bag down on the floor.

Baze grabbed a soda from the fridge and a bag of potato chips. Then he remembered Lux. "You want anything?"

Lux opened the fridge and grabbed a beer.

Baze took it from her. "You want a drink, you can have a soda." He handed her a Coke.

Lux took a sip. "Just not the same without rum," she commented.

Baze frowned slightly. He sat down on the brown leather couch in his living room and started playing Wii Tennis.

Lux joined him. "Is Jaime here?" She asked, her tone bored.

"Jaime is off limits," Baze said, giving Lux a hard look. He gestured toward another Wii controller. "Wanna play?"

Lux's expression hardened.

She picked the controller up, determined to beat Baze. At the game and when it came to Jaime. She would show him.

Lux smiled triumphantly when she won the first match. "How's it feel to be beat by a girl?"

"I let you win. I thought that's what dads were supposed to do," Baze retorted.

Baze studied his daughter. He couldn't get over how much she looked like him. Cate was right. Lux had his eyes. He thought her facial expressions looked like his, too. It hit him for the first time that she was a part of him. His expression softened.

Lux shifted uncomfortably under Baze's gaze. "What?" She demanded.

"Do you think we look alike?" Baze wondered allowed.

Lux made a face and shook her head.

"Nah. Neither do I," Baze said softly, raking a hand through his hair and turning back to the game.

Baze glanced at a text message on his cell phone. "Cate's ready for me to take you home."

Cate had hung streamers in the kitchen. A birthday cake that read _Happy Birthday Lux_ was sitting on the kitchen table.

"We couldn't forget your birthday," Baze said.

Cate smiled and handed Lux a beautifully wrapped birthday present. "Happy birthday."

"Thank you, Cate," Lux said, touched. Just as she had that morning, she wondered why Cate was being so nice. She was almost acting like she wanted Lux there.

Baze lit the sixteen candles that Cate had arranged on the birthday cake. Cate instinctively held Lux's blonde locks back as she blew out the candles.

Cate cut the cake and served Lux and Baze before getting a piece for herself.

"Did you cook?" Lux asked skeptically, eyeing the cake warily.

"No. It's from the bakery," Cate replied, smiling slightly.


	7. The Good And The Bad

Ryan cut to commercial and glanced at the news updates on the computer screen. "Hey, doesn't Lux go to Longfellow?"

"Yeah. Why?" Cate asked as she refilled her coffee mug.

"It's been shut down because of gang fights. It's on the AP," Ryan said.

"What?" Cate said, her voice laced with concern. She looked over Ryan's shoulder. "Oh my gosh. I have to go. Can you cover for me?"

Ryan nodded.

Cate called Baze's cell phone, but he didn't answer. She tried the school, but it went to voicemail.

Cate continued calling Baze's cell, leaving frantic messages as she drove home. She opened the front door and surveyed the living room and kitchen for any sign of Lux. Lux hadn't come home.

Cate tried Open Bar next.

"Is Lux here?" Cate asked hopefully.

"No," Jaime replied as he wiped down the bar. "Baze took her to a movie."

Cate rolled her eyes. The least Baze could have done was let Cate know that he'd picked Lux up from school. Sometimes it seemed like he deliberately tried to make her life more difficult.

At least now she knew that Lux was OK. She needed to get Lux into a different school. One without gang members and criminals.

* * *

"That was so corny," Baze whined as he and Lux left the movie theater.

"I liked it," Lux said, attempting to sound insulted.

"Sorry," Baze mumbled.

Lux laughed.

Baze realized she was just messing with him and tried not to smile. "Very funny. Next time I'm picking the movie."

Lux smiled slightly, surprised Baze was planning on there being a next time.

Baze pulled up to Cate's house. Cate stormed out to the car and opened Lux's door. She stared past Lux, glaring at Baze. "I left you a dozen messages."

Baze frowned. "For future reference, it's customary to leave one message and wait for the other person to call you back."

"I heard about what happened at Lux's school. I didn't know where she was. If she was OK. You should have called," Cate said, her tone accusatory.

"Relax, this kind of thing happens all the time. This time there was just more blood," Lux said.

Both Baze and Cate stared at Lux in shock.

"If State prison had a feeder school, Longfellow would be it," Lux explained. She grabbed her book bag and hopped out of the Jeep.

"See you tomorrow, Kiddo," Baze said before he pulled away.

"I transferred you to Westmonte High School," Cate told Lux.

Lux stopped in her tracks and stared at Cate. "You what?" She demanded, her tone deadly.

"Transferred you to Westmonte," Cate repeated uncertainly.

Lux shook her head. "No."

Cate sighed. "I know it's scary to think of a new school and making new friends."

Lux shot Cate a dirty look. "I like my old friends."

"I know. That's why I got you this." Cate handed Lux a cell phone. "So you can talk to your old friends anytime you want."

Lux took the phone reluctantly. "Tasha doesn't have a cell phone. She has to use the pay phone at Sunnyvale. And I can talk to her at school. I'm not going to Westmonte."

Cate rolled her eyes. "You're going to Westmonte," she said firmly. "And it's not just for that. It's for us, too. So we can text each other during the day. I already programmed my number in. And Baze's."

"What part of no don't you understand?" Lux said angrily. She crossed her arms in front of her chest defiantly. "I'm _not_ going to Westmonte and you can't make me. If you try, I just won't go."

Lux glared at Cate. Who did Cate think she was? She couldn't just pull Lux out of her school.

And Cate couldn't tell Lux what to do, Lux thought angrily. She'd given up that right sixteen years ago.

Maybe staying with Cate had been pretty good. Better than Lux had imagined. Cate had surprised Lux more than once. She'd been trying and she hadn't been doing half-bad. But she also hadn't earned the right to tell Lux what to do.

"I promise you, I am only looking out for your best interests," Cate said.

Lux turned on her heel and started walking. Away from Cate's house. Away from Cate.

"Lux…" Cate stared helplessly as Lux walked away.

* * *

Lux sat down on a bench at the bus stop. She needed a cigarette. She lit one and took a long drag.

She heard ringing. It took her a moment to realize it was the cell phone Cate had given her. She glanced at the display. She silenced it when she saw Cate's name.

Lux took the bus to Chinatown. She found Tasha easily. Tasha was smoking in front of their favorite coffee shop.

Tasha's face lit up when she saw her best friend. She hugged Lux. "Did Cate kick you out?" She asked hopefully. She hadn't expected to see Lux.

Lux had only been gone for a few days and Tasha already missed her like crazy. They were more than friends. They were family. They needed each other.

"No. Worse," Lux said angrily. "She transferred me to a new school. I told her I wouldn't go and she told me I have to."

Tasha raised her eyebrows. "She obviously doesn't know you. You don't like being told what to do," she said knowingly. Telling Lux to do something only made Lux more determined to do it.

"This is different, Tash. I'm used to being told what to do. By foster parents. By Fern," Lux said.

"Used to not actually doing it," Tasha added, smirking.

Lux smiled slightly. "Cate gave me away. And she acts like nothing happened. Like she's still my mom. She just tells me what to do and I'm supposed to, what? Play the dutiful daughter?" She cried out.

Tasha smiled sympathetically. "When's the home inspection?"

"Not until the end of the week," Lux replied.

"You're gonna tell Fern you don't want to be with Cate, right?" Tasha asked, making eye contact.

Lux hesitated. She'd been planning on telling Fern she wanted to go back to Sunnyvale. She didn't want to stay somewhere she wasn't wanted.

But Cate had been acting like she wanted Lux there. Even Baze had been acting like he wanted to be a part of Lux's life. At first Lux had regarded her parents suspiciously. She'd finally started to lower her guard after the birthday party. And the last few days had been pretty good.

Tasha narrowed her eyes when Lux didn't answer right away. "You don't want to stay with her, right?" She demanded, her tone harsh.

Lux looked down. "No."

Not if it's going to be like this, Lux added silently. Not if she's going to order me around.

Cate's house felt so empty without Lux. Lux had been there for less than a week and it already felt like she belonged there.

Cate tried Lux's cell phone again. She wasn't surprised when it went straight to voicemail.

Lux had been so angry. Cate didn't even understand what she'd done that was so bad. She'd seen the story about the gang fights at Lux's school and imagined her daughter there. She couldn't stand the thought of Lux getting hurt in the crossfire.

So she'd gotten Lux into a good school. She'd just wanted to make everything bad in Lux's life better. It had never even occurred to her that Lux would be angry.

Cate sighed sadly. She poured a glass of wine and drank deeply. She dialed Baze. "Hey. Is Lux there?"

"No," Baze replied.

Cate frowned. She'd assumed Lux ran to Baze when she got mad. She didn't know where else to look for Lux. "She got mad at me and left. I don't know what to do. Where to look for her."

"What did you do?" Baze asked.

"I didn't do anything! I just got her into Westmonte and she flipped out," Cate said defensively.

"You transferred her without telling me?" Baze asked angrily.

"I was trying to get her away from criminals and gang members! Just call me if she shows up." Cate breathed a sigh of relief when Lux opened the front door.

"Never mind. She's here," Cate told Baze before hanging up. She stared at Lux. "Where were you?"

"Out," Lux replied. She walked past Cate. She went into the bathroom to wash her face and get ready for bed.

Cate followed close behind. She stood in the doorway to the bathroom, hands on her hips. "Out where?" She demanded.

"Don't worry about it," Lux said. She patted her face dry with a washcloth and turned toward the door. She tried to move past Cate, but Cate blocked the door.

Cate grabbed Lux's shoulders gently, holding the teenager still and forcing her to meet Cate's gaze. "I _am_ worried about it."

"Cate, I've been on my own forever. I can take care of myself," Lux said, her tone snide.

Cate swallowed. "While you're staying here, I need to know where you are. That you're OK."

Lux rolled her eyes. "I'm OK. Can I go to bed now?"

Cate nodded slowly.


	8. Second Chances

Lux heard Cate getting ready for work. She rolled over and pretended she was still sleeping. She waited until she heard Cate leave to get up and start getting ready for school.

Lux was waiting when Baze pulled up to take her to school.

"Hey Kiddo." Baze grinned.

"Hey." Lux smiled slightly.

Lux's smile disappeared when she realized Baze was going the opposite direction of Longfellow. "Where are you going? Longfellow is across town."

Baze stared at Lux. "Cate, she, uh, told me she transferred you to Westmonte."

"Yeah, well, she didn't have any right to do that. I don't want to go to Westmonte," Lux said angrily.

Baze raked a hand through his hair. "I know you're mad at Cate. You know, she didn't talk to me before she transferred you either."

Lux's expression softened. Baze wasn't the one who she was angry with. "It's not your fault."

Baze breathed a sigh of relief. "Cate and I, we went to Westmonte. It's a good school. Just give it a chance."

Lux had no intention of giving it a chance. Giving it a chance was letting Cate tell her what to do. Letting Cate make her do something she didn't want to do. And that wasn't going to happen. Lux fully intended to ditch.

Baze parked in the parking lot.

"You don't have to come in with me," Lux said quickly. Baze's presence would make it hard to ditch.

"I want to," Baze said.

Math was waiting for them in the entrance. Baze and Math showed Lux around.

Lux stopped at the trophy case. "Wait. Is that you?" She laughed when she saw a picture of seventeen year-old Baze.

Baze grinned. "Yeah. We won the State Championship." He turned to Math. "Hey, remember that play?"

"Yeah, you scored the winning touchdown," Math recalled.

Math continued his tour, stopping the cafeteria. "Do you want me to introduce you around?"

Lux made a face.

"Or not," Math said quickly, smiling slightly at Lux's horrified expression.

Lux hung out in the hallway, studying the other students. She'd become a pretty good judge of character. She'd attended her fair share of schools as a result of being bounced around foster homes. Most of which were in different school districts.

She quickly zeroed in on the most popular girl, a pretty brunette. After listening to the girl and her friends for a few minutes, Lux knew the queen bee was Brynn and her boyfriend was Jones.

Lux took a deep breath. She joined Brynn and her friends. "Hey. Are you guys talking about Jones' party?" She asked, using what she'd overheard.

The girls exchanged a glance. "Are you friends with Jones?" Brynn asked curiously.

"Not, like, with benefits or anything," Lux replied. She smiled slightly. "I've been in boarding school in California. I got kicked out."

One of the girls looked impressed, but Brynn, fixed Lux with an icy stare. "I'm sorry. Did we ask to hear your life story?" She asked, her tone snooty.

Lux didn't know why she'd tried to be friends with those girls in the first place. She didn't even like girls like that.

She didn't have anything in common with them, Lux knew. She watched as Brynn kissed a boyishly handsome football player. Jones, Lux assumed.

Lux began formulating a plan to get back at Brynn and show Cate that Lux wouldn't just fall in line and do what she was told. She would show them.

Lux waited in the hallway. When the bell rang, Brynn and Jones went different directions.

Lux followed Jones. She ran into him with purpose, her books spilling onto the floor.

"Sorry," Jones said.

"It's my fault," Lux said sweetly.

Jones flashed a perfect smile at Lux. He helped her pick her books up. "I haven't seen you around before. Are you new?"

Lux returned the smile. "Is it that obvious? I'm Lux."

"Jones." Jones shook Lux's hand.

"Jones." Lux pretended to be deep in thought. "Wait a minute, it's your birthday, right? Everyone's talking about your party."

Jones blushed slightly. "Yeah. You should come."

Lux smiled seductively. "What do you want for your birthday?"

"You don't have to get me anything," Jones replied, taken aback.

Lux rolled her eyes. This kid was too innocent. He didn't even know she was shamelessly flirting with him. "I want to. If you could have anything you wanted, what would you want?" Lux said suggestively. She pressed herself against him and held his gaze.

Jones raised his eyebrows. "Anything?"

* * *

"Are you sure Lux isn't here?" Ryan asked as he and Cate headed for her bedroom.

"Positive," Cate replied. "She's at school."

"Good," Ryan said, grinning boyishly. They hadn't had any time alone together all week. Cate had been busy with Lux.

He kissed Cate hard. Cate tore at his shirt. He pulled her down to the bed.

Cate froze when she heard the front door slam.

"You were only at Westmonte for three hours. This has to be a record for the fastest anyone's ever been suspended," Baze said, giving Lux a hard look.

"Call Guinness," Lux retorted.

Cate's eyes widened. She adjusted her top.

"You got suspended? For what?" Cate demanded when she found Baze and Lux in the kitchen.

Baze shot Lux a dirty look. "Doing it on a lab table."

Cate's eyes widened. "Doing it? Doing what exactly?"

Ryan emerged from Cate's bedroom. He rubbed Cate's back gently.

Lux took in Cate's messy hair and Ryan's shirt that looked like it had been thrown on the floor. She rolled her eyes. "The same thing you and Ryan were just doing in your bedroom."

Cate sucked in her breath. "At school? With who?"

"The quarterback," Baze supplied. "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree."

"Actually, the apple is nothing like the tree. The apple knows how to use a condom," Lux said pointedly.

Cate blushed slightly. She looked down.

"We used a condom," Baze said dully.

"That's not the point," Cate said. She turned to Lux, her expression grim. "I don't think you understand how serious this is. It will go on your permanent record. It will affect how your teachers perceive you."

"At Westmonte. Not at Longfellow," Lux said, smiling slightly.

Cate narrowed her eyes. "Wait a minute. You intentionally got suspended because you don't want to go to Westmonte?"

Lux crossed her arms in front of her chest defiantly. "I told you, I'm not going to Westmonte. You can't make me."

"I just, I don't even know what I did that was so bad. Get you into a good school?" Cate said sadly.

"A school I don't want to go to!" Lux shouted. "But you didn't ask me. You didn't listen to me. You don't care what I want." Lux shook her head furiously. "You've never cared."

Lux bit her lip. She wished she hadn't let that last part slip out. She didn't want Cate to know that she'd wanted her to care.

She didn't anymore. She'd gotten over the childish fantasy that her parents really wanted her and would come back for her a long time ago.

"Yes, I do," Cate said. Tears stung her eyes.

Lux looked unconvinced.

"Lux, I do care what you want," Cate said desperately, trying to meet Lux's gaze. "I care about you."

"Yeah, well, you sure have a screwed up way of showing it," Lux muttered. She turned on her heel and left.

Cate flinched when she heard the front door slam.

"This is bigger than the Westmonte thing," Baze said dully.

Cate nodded slowly. "And we have one day to work it out before the home inspection."

"We're screwed." Baze buried his head in his hands.

They split up to look for Lux.

Ryan found the teenager at the bus stop. He sat down beside her on the bench. "Where are you going?"

Lux swiped at her eyes hastily. Her cheeks burned.

"It's OK to cry, Lux," Ryan said gently.

No, it's not, Lux thought. She was furious with herself for letting them get to her. Mortified that Ryan had caught her crying. Weak people cried. Lux was strong. She _had_ to be strong.

"And it's OK to let people in," Ryan said.

"On a case-by-case basis," Lux said, smiling slightly.

She'd learned really early on in life that letting people in only gave them an opportunity to hurt you. An opportunity that many of her foster parents had taken advantage of.

Tasha was the only person in fifteen years that hadn't hurt Lux. She was the only person Lux trusted.

"Do Cate and Baze make the cut?" Ryan asked.

"I don't know," Lux said quietly.

She shouldn't let them in, Lux knew. They'd given her away like she was nothing. Letting them in only gave them another opportunity to hurt her. One she feared they'd take.

And Lux knew her parents would wound her more deeply than any of her foster parents ever had. Unlike the various foster parents Lux had been with, deep down she actually wanted to be with her parents. Lux didn't know if she could take it when they hurt her.

"You know, I never understood what had happened to Cate to make her so screwed up. She pushes people away. I made the grave mistake of calling Cate _the one_ and she threw a remote at my head." Ryan chuckled.

Lux laughed.

Ryan's expression sobered. His chocolate eyes bored into Lux's baby blues. "When I found out about you, it all made sense. She's been pushing people away because she doesn't want to lose them. The way she lost you."

Lux shook her head. "She didn't lose me. She gave me away. There's a big difference."

"No. She gave you up," Ryan corrected. "Because she loved you. She wanted to do what was best for you."

"It wasn't what was best for me," Lux said dully.

She remembered the worst foster parents she'd ever had and grimaced. She'd suffered years of abuse. Because Cate had given her away. And she'd ended up with the scum of the earth.

"No," Ryan agreed, "But she wanted to do what was best for you. And that's what she was trying to do when she enrolled you at Westmonte. She may have gone about it wrong, but her intentions were good."

"Ryan, how did you know Cate wanted you?" Lux asked.

"She may not have said it, but she showed me," Ryan replied. "When Cate decides she wants something, she throws herself into it."

Cate was throwing herself into taking care of Lux, Lux realized. That's why she was trying so hard. Why she woke up early to cook Lux breakfast. Why she gave Lux money for lunch. Why she remembered Lux's birthday and went all out to make it the best birthday Lux had ever had.

"Will you take me home?" Lux asked softly.

* * *

Cate drove around, looking for her daughter. She answered her cell phone after the first ring, hoping it was Lux. She breathed a sigh of relief when Ryan told her he'd just dropped Lux off at home. She called Baze and relayed the information to him.

Lux was already "in bed" on the couch when Cate got home. Cate sat down on the edge of the couch. Lux's eyes fluttered open. She sat up and met Cate's gaze.

"I'm sorry I transferred you without talking to you first," Cate said.

Lux smiled slightly. "You can transfer me back."

"No," Cate said firmly. "I'm sorry I didn't talk to you first, but I'm not sorry I transferred you. Lux, I'm responsible for taking care of you. I have to do what I think is right."

"You have no right-" Lux began.

"I have every right," Cate cut her off. "The judge released you into my custody."

"Temporary custody," Lux shot back.

Cate nodded slowly. Tears stung her eyes. She wanted it to be permanent. She wanted her daughter. She knew she couldn't stand it if Lux left her again. But, she also wanted Lux to want to be there. She wouldn't make Lux stay.

"And it's up to you if you want to stay here or not. But while you're here, I can only do what I think is right," Cate said, struggling to keep her voice even. "Good night."

Cate barely made it to her bedroom before tears started streaming down her face. She didn't know if Lux would decide to stay. Lux didn't exactly wear her heart on her sleeve.

The only thing Cate could do was wait and see. Waiting was already driving Cate crazy and the home inspection wasn't even until tomorrow afternoon.

Cate tossed and turned all night. She was too anxious to sleep.


	9. Power Play

"What happened last night? After I dropped Lux off?" Ryan asked.

Cate sighed. "I told her I wasn't transferring her back to Longfellow. That while she's staying with me, I have to do what I think is right."

"How'd she take that?" Ryan asked.

Cate made a face. "I don't know." She hesitated, afraid to even voice her fear. "Ryan, what if she doesn't want to stay?"

Ryan smiled reassuringly. "She will."

"What if I don't get approved?" Cate said, her voice laced with concern.

"You will," Ryan said confidently. "Your house is ready for the inspection. Lux's room is ready."

Cate smiled slightly.

* * *

Lux slept in. She was annoyed when the doorbell rang, waking her up. Who rings people's doorbells at 9:42 am? It's still morning, Lux thought angrily.

Lux was surprised to see Jones standing on Cate's doorstep. What was he doing there? How did he even know where she lived?

"Hey." Jones grinned.

"Hi," Lux said.

"Did I wake you up?" Jones asked when he took in her appearance. Lux was still wearing pajamas and her hair was tousled from sleep.

Lux nodded.

"I can't believe your parents let you sleep in," Jones said, impressed.

Lux shrugged.

"Look, I just wanted to apologize," Jones said.

Lux stared at him blankly. "For?"

"Well, for getting you suspended," Jones replied. "I'm sorry. I hope you're not in too much trouble."

Lux smirked. She'd been the one who had gotten _him_ suspended. Intentionally. She'd wanted to get kicked out of that stupid school to teach Cate a lesson and she'd really wanted to get back at Brynn. "It's not like it was your idea."

Jones blushed slightly. "Actually, it was. You just made a move first."

Lux raised her eyebrows. "Don't you have a girlfriend?"

"Yeah. No. I don't know," Jones said uncertainly.

"Which is it?" Lux retorted.

"Brynn and I have only been going out for a few weeks. I like her, but I _really_ like you," Jones said truthfully.

"Brynn really likes you," Lux pointed out.

"And you?" Jones asked hopefully.

Jones wasn't her type at all. She'd been trying to get a rise out of Baze when she told him she liked older guys, but it was true. Jones was boyishly handsome, but he was so young…so innocent. Before Lux could answer, Baze pulled up in his blue Jeep.

Baze glared at the boy standing on Cate's front porch. "Let me guess. The quarterback?"

Jones shifted uncomfortably under Baze's gaze.

"No shit, Sherlock. What tipped you off? The letterman jacket?" Lux said.

"I'm Jones. Nice to meet you." Jones extended his hand politely.

"I wouldn't go quite that far," Baze muttered.

"I'll, uh, see you at school," Jones said before retreating hastily.

"After you're done being suspended," Baze muttered under his breath. "Does Cate know that punk was over here?"

"Not unless she's psychic," Lux retorted.

Baze frowned at Lux's tone. "I don't think she'd be happy about it."

"And here I thought you guys would be thrilled. You told me to find someone my own age." Lux smirked.

Baze didn't want to fight with her. Not before the inspection that afternoon. "I stopped by to feed you." He held up a bag of donuts.

"Do I look like a dog?" Lux said sarcastically. "I can feed myself."

"Cate doesn't have very much food in the house," Baze pointed out.

Lux smirked. "Yeah, 'cause she couldn't cook if her life depended on it." She grabbed a donut from the bag and sat down on the couch. Baze joined her.

Lux turned the TV on and flipped through the channels. She stopped at _Night at the Museum_. She noticed Baze giving her a funny look. "What?"

"I love this movie," Baze commented. He'd been surprised at her choice. He saw more of himself in Lux every time he hung out with her.

The movie was almost over when Cate got home. "What are you doing?" She demanded, surveying the living room. A pizza box, soda cans, candy wrappers and ice cream cartons littered the coffee table. Lux was still in pajamas.

Lux rolled her eyes. "Watching a movie. What does it look like we're doing?"

"Your social worker is gonna be here any minute! The living room is completely trashed out. You're still in pajamas," Cate said, her tone accusatory.

"So?" Lux stared at Cate.

Lux had intentionally gotten suspended. Cate couldn't help but wonder if the teenager was trying to make sure the home inspection didn't go well. She swallowed a lump in the back of her throat.

"Are you trying to make sure I lose custody of you?" Cate asked, struggling to keep her voice even.

"Relax, Cate. Fern won't care what I'm wearing and trust me, I've lived in way worse places than this," Lux said.

Cate took a deep breath. She needed to keep her cool. She did not want to start fighting with Lux right before Fern showed up.

Cate started collecting trash from the coffee table to throw in the garbage. Baze got up to help her.

"Can you please just go get dressed?" Cate asked, her tone pleading.

"Fine," Lux muttered. She threw jeans and a Henley on. When she returned to the living room, Cate was fluffing the decorative pillows on the couch.

Lux smirked. "She's not inspecting how fluffy your pillows are."

"I just, I want everything to look nice," Cate said.

Fern knocked on the door. Cate and Baze greeted her a little too cheerfully.

Fern made her way through Cate's house. "Where does Lux sleep?"

Cate glanced at Lux nervously. Ryan had fixed up the attic for Lux, but Cate hadn't wanted to show her until she knew for sure that she would get approved. "We, uh, fixed up the attic for her," Cate said quietly.

Lux looked up in surprise. She followed them upstairs. She gasped when she saw the bedroom.

She'd never had her own bedroom before. Just having a room to herself would have been better than what Lux was used to, but Cate had gone above and beyond. She'd thought of everything.

Cate smiled as she watched Lux's reaction. Lux was usually so hard to read, but caught off guard the teen looked genuinely happy.

Fern also noted Lux's expression. They descended the stairs and sat down at the kitchen table.

"How is everything going?" Fern asked.

"Great!" Cate replied quickly.

Lux smirked slightly.

"And has Lux been splitting time with you two fifty-fifty?" Fern asked.

"No, uh, she's been staying at Cate's," Baze replied.

"I have a copy of Cate's latest bank statement and references, but I don't have any of your paperwork," Fern told Baze.

Cate shot Baze a dirty look.

"I'll, uh, get it to you as soon as possible." Baze smiled weakly.

"Now I'd like to talk to Lux," Fern said.

Cate and Baze exchanged a nervous glance. Cate nodded slowly. When neither moved, Fern added, "Alone."

Baze and Cate went out to sit on the front porch. Cate instinctively reached for Baze's hand.

"What if she doesn't want to stay?" Cate asked the question that had her on edge all day. Despite Ryan's best efforts to reassure her, Cate didn't have any idea what Lux would decide.

"We can't be worse than a group home," Baze said.

Cate didn't look convinced. "She's so mad that I transferred her to Westmonte."

"You did the right thing," Baze mumbled.

Cate smiled gratefully.

* * *

Fern studied Lux carefully. Lux stared at the floor, feigning disinterest. Her arms were crossed in front of her chest protectively.

"Tell me how things are really going," Fern said.

"Fine," Lux replied.

Fern frowned, dissatisfied with the response. "Lux…" Fern waited until Lux met her gaze before continuing. "Do you want to stay with Cate and Baze?"

"Yeah," Lux replied, though she didn't sound certain.

Lux wasn't certain. She'd never been less certain about anything in her life.

When the judge had forced this on her, on them, they all had an excuse if it didn't work out. If Cate changed her mind about taking Lux in, Lux could act like she hadn't wanted to be there in the first place.

Cate had told Lux it was up to her if she stayed or not. Now Cate would know Lux wanted to stay. That gave Cate power. Power Lux didn't want her to have.

Cate could hurt her now. Even worse than before.

Lux had never gotten over being unwanted the first time Cate had given her away. If Cate changed her mind now, Lux wouldn't be able to deal with the rejection, she knew. It would break Lux.

Fern nodded, sensing the teenager's distress. She gave Lux a business card even though Lux teen already knew her number. "If you need anything, call me."

Lux smiled slightly. "Thanks, Fern."


	10. Shattered Dreams

Cate opened the manila envelope Fern had mailed her. The envelope contained Lux's file.

Cate smiled as she looked through the contents. She wanted to know everything about her daughter. She still had so much to learn.

She looked at Lux's medical records. Her smile disappeared when she read that Lux had three surgeries because she was born with congenital heart defect. Cate was instantly filled with regret that she wasn't there. That Lux was alone. She pictured her daughter lying in a hospital bed alone at age two and her eyes filled with tears.

Cate looked at Lux's old report cards and frowned. Lux's grades weren't good. She would have a hard time getting into college.

Cate continued to rifle through the file and looked at Lux's test scores from the PSAT. Her forehead wrinkled in confusion. Lux had scored in the 98th percentile. She'd outscored Cate and Cate had been valedictorian.

Lux was smart. Why was she doing so poorly in school? Cate frowned.

Cate stopped by Westmonte on her way home from work to get the work Lux was missing because of her suspension.

"Lux?" Cate called as she opened the door. She set the large pile of homework down on the kitchen table and climbed the attic stairs to Lux's new bedroom. "Lux."

Lux stretched lazily in bed and propped herself up.

"Did you sleep all day?" Cate asked, her tone disapproving.

Lux glanced at the alarm clock on her bedside table. "No…not yet."

Cate looked somewhat less than amused. "You're suspended from school. Not on summer vacation. You can't just sleep all day."

Lux shot Cate a dirty look. "What did you want me to do today, _Mom_?" She said, her tone mocking.

Cate stared at Lux open-mouthed. It took her a moment to get over the shock of her daughter calling her _Mom_, even if it had been sarcastic. "I stopped by Westmonte to pick up your make-up work. You can get started on it."

"Can I, really?" Lux asked, feigning excitement, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Cate rolled her eyes.

Lux emerged from the attic after about ten minutes. She'd changed out of her pajamas. She shot Cate a dirty look before sitting down at the kitchen table.

"I'm here if you need help with anything," Cate said, glancing over Lux's shoulder as the teen set to work.

"I think I can manage," Lux said sarcastically.

"It's just, your grades, they aren't-" Cate began.

"How do you even know my grades?" Lux interrupted.

"Fern, she sent your file over," Cate mumbled.

Lux looked less than thrilled. The teen suddenly became very interested in her notebook.

Cate sat down beside Lux. "Lux, you're smart."

Lux smirked. "Gee, thanks."

Cate put a hand on Lux's shoulder. Lux glared at the offending hand and Cate quickly withdrew her hands, wringing them in her lap. "No, Lux, I saw your test scores. Ninety-eighth percentile on your PSATs. If you work hard, you can get your grades up…go to college."

Lux glared at Cate. "I don't want to go to college. I'm not you, Cate. I don't want to be you."

Cate's expression was a mixture of sadness and disappointment. "What do you want to do?"

"Modern medicine is advancing to the point where the average life span will be one hundred, but I read this article that said social security is supposed to run out by 2025, which means people are gonna have to stay at their jobs until they're…" Lux quickly did the calculation in her head. "Eighty. So forgive me for not wanting to rush into any decision making."

"You're smart. If you put half as much effort into your future as you do your sarcasm, you can do anything you want. You must have some kind of dream," Cate said.

Lux shook her head. "Where I come from having a dream doesn't make you smart. Knowing it won't come true, that makes you smart."

Lux used to have dreams. That her mom would come back for her. That she'd be adopted. That she'd have a family. After fifteen years of disappointment, she'd learned not to get her hopes up. If she always expected the worst, she would never be disappointed again. For Lux, the worst was often reality.

The sixteen year old's expression hardened. She was wise beyond her years. She'd seen things most teenagers only saw on TV. She'd experienced more bad than most people would experience in their lifetime.

"That's not true," Cate said, looking into Lux's brilliant blue eyes.

Cate knew Lux really believed none of her dreams would come true. What had happened to the teenager to break her?

"The graduation rate at Longfellow is sixty-seven percent. Most kids don't even graduate let alone go to college," Lux scoffed.

"OK Lux, you're at Westmonte now," Cate said.

"Yeah. Now. But I spent fifteen years in schools like Longfellow. I've been in and out of more schools than I can count because I was being bounced around crappy foster homes. My grades are crap. So don't sit here and tell me I can do anything I want," Lux said, her tone holding anger and resentment. She shook her head. "I can't."

"I can't tell if this is even about school anymore," Cate said.

"This is about my life!" Lux spat out.

Cate swallowed a lump in the back of her throat. "I know you've been through a lot in your life-"

"You don't know! You don't know what I've been through! You don't know what it's like!" Lux cried out.

"I can't change what happened in the past," Cate said softly.

"Right. You can't change what happened. And you can't act like nothing happened! 'Cause it did," Lux muttered.

"I just want a chance to make it right," Cate said, her tone pleading.

"You can't make it right!" Lux struggled to keep her voice even as she fought back tears.

"No, I know I can't make what happened in the past right," Cate agreed quickly, not wanting to make Lux any angrier. "Only you can make peace with your past. That's not something I can do for you. But Lux, I'm trying to make your future better. You just have to let me."

Lux looked down. She couldn't face Cate right now. She just wanted Cate to leave her alone.

Cate wanted Lux to forgive her and Lux didn't think she could do that. Not now. Maybe not ever.

Cate had given Lux away to nothing, to nobody and lived her own life like nothing had happened.

Now Cate acted like nothing had happened, like she was Lux's mom and it was perfectly natural for her to tell Lux what to do.

Lux hadn't been lying when she said Cate didn't know what she'd been through. She'd only ever told Cate and Baze that she'd been in bad foster homes. They didn't know the half of it.

No one could make what had happened to Lux right. She couldn't make peace with it. Cate didn't understand.

Lux took a deep breath, struggling to compose herself before meeting Cate's gaze. When Lux looked up, the pain and emotion was gone from her face. She fixed Cated with an icy glare. "I thought you wanted me to do homework. Are you gonna sit here talking to me or let me work?"

Cate sighed. She went into the other room, leaving Lux alone. Lux obviously didn't want to talk to her.


	11. Accidents Happen

"Hey Kiddo," Baze said when Lux opened the door. Cate had asked him to make sure Lux didn't sleep all day.

"Hey." Lux helped herself to a donut from the bag Baze was holding and led the way to the couch.

Baze instantly recognized the movie Lux had been watching. _Hitch_. He grinned. His kid definitely took after him when it came to movie choices.

Lux noticed and smirked. "I didn't take you for a fan of chick flicks."

"This isn't a chick flick," Baze said defensively. "It has Will Smith in it. It's a-"

"Romantic comedy?" Lux supplied.

They had worked their way through the entire bag of donuts by the time the movie ended. Baze glanced at the clock. "Crap," he muttered.

Lux raised her eyebrows. "You have somewhere better to be?" She asked, pretending to be insulted.

"No, it's just, Cate will be home soon and she's gonna be pissed that we sat around watching movies all morning," Baze explained.

Lux shrugged. "I already did all my schoolwork."

"What do you say to a driving lesson?" Baze asked. He was not in the mood to deal with Cate screaming at him.

"No, I don't have a license. I haven't even taken drivers' ed," Lux replied.

"The sooner you learn how to drive, the sooner I don't have to drive you," Baze said, grinning boyishly. "Go get dressed. I'll clean up and we'll get out of here before Cate gets home."

* * *

"This is a really bad idea," Lux mumbled as they got in the Jeep.

"It's a great idea," Baze insisted. He began giving her instructions.

Lux drove slowly, terrified of hitting something.

"You know, you can get a ticket for going under the speed limit," Baze quipped.

Lux looked up in surprise. "I was going slow?"

"Grandmas were passing you by," Baze said lightly.

Lux sped up as they turned back onto Cate's street. Baze started to tell her how to downshift.

Cate was gardening in her front yard when she noticed Lux in the drivers' seat of Baze's Jeep. "Why is she driving? Why is she driving?" Cate demanded angrily, drowning out Baze's instructions.

Lux was headed right for Cate and she didn't have the foggiest idea how to stop. Cate backed away just in time. Baze's Jeep crashed into a large potted plant before Baze stepped in, bringing the car to an abrupt stop. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to!" Lux cried out.

As the Jeep stopped suddenly, Lux was thrown forward. She instinctively held up her arms to protect her face. Her left arm banged into the door hard. Baze stared as they heard a loud cracking sound.

Cate was at the drivers' side door within seconds of the Jeep stopping. She threw open the door. "What is wrong with you?" She spat out, glaring at Baze.

Baze bit his lip. "Cate…" He nodded toward Lux. The teen was holding her wrist.

"Oh my gosh! Are you OK?" Cate asked, her voice laced with concern.

"Yeah," Lux said quickly, her expression impassive.

Cate and Baze exchanged a concerned glance.

"Let me see your wrist," Cate said.

Lux stepped down from the Jeep and offered Cate her right arm.

"The other wrist," Cate said. She waited for Lux to hold up her left arm.

Cate examined Lux's left wrist and noticed that it already looked larger than her right wrist. "It's swollen," Cate said, her tone accusatory, as she shot Baze a dirty look. She turned back to Lux. "We're going to the hospital."

"No!" Lux cried out.

Cate grabbed Lux's good arm and pulled her to the Toyota Prius. "Come on."

"I'm coming, too," Baze said.

"I don't want to go to the hospital!" Lux said angrily from the backseat.

Cate studied her daughter in the rearview mirror. She couldn't tell if Lux was scared. The only thing she knew for certain was that Lux was angry. It seemed like Lux was always angry. "You're hurt."

"Yeah, and how are you gonna tell them I got hurt?" Lux spat out.

Cate's forehead wrinkled in concern. "A car accident," she reminded Lux.

Lux rolled her eyes. "Yeah, 'cause I was driving. Without a license," she pointed out.

"You know what? It doesn't matter how this happened," Cate said, though she was still furious with Baze for letting Lux drive. This was all his fault, she thought angrily.

"Maybe not to you. But it will matter to the doctors. To the police," Lux muttered.

Cate realized Lux was right. She swallowed hard. "OK. Then we'll lie. We'll tell them Baze was driving."

"Let's not and say we did," Lux retorted. "I don't see why we even have to go to the hospital in the first place. My wrist is fine!"

"It's not fine," Cate argued.

* * *

Cate sat down to fill out Lux's paperwork. As she filled out the form, she realized how much she still didn't know about her daughter. "What's your social security number?"

Lux rolled her eyes before answering.

"Are there any medications you're allergic to?" Cate asked.

"Why don't I fill it out?" Lux scowled.

Cate frowned slightly, but handed Lux the form.

Lux struggled to write with a broken wrist. Fortunately she was right-handed, but the form kept moving with the strokes of the pen. She needed her left hand to hold the paper down so she could write.

Cate watched Lux struggle with the form. She reached out to help, but quickly withdrew her hand, knowing Lux would only push her away.

"Looks like you could use a hand," Baze quipped.

Lux smiled slightly and allowed Baze to hold the form down. Cate watched them enviously. Why did the teen let Baze help her? He was the reason they were in the hospital, Cate fumed.

"Lux Cassidy," A nurse called.

The trio followed the nurse to an exam room. "Lux, how did you hurt your arm?" She asked.

"A car accident," Cate replied quickly.

"More of a fender bender," Baze said, flashing the nurse a perfect smile.

The nurse smiled at Baze. "Do you need an exam?" She asked.

"Nah, Lux is the only one that got hurt," Baze replied.

Cate rolled her eyes as she watched Baze flirt with Lux's nurse. He was unbelievable!

The nurse looked slightly disappointed as she turned back to Lux. "How bad does your wrist hurt on a scale of one to ten? One being the least and ten being the most."

"One," Lux replied without thinking.

Cate gave Lux a hard look. She knew Lux's arm hurt. The teen obviously couldn't even use it. Why was Lux being so difficult?

The nurse's forehead wrinkled in confusion. "One? And you think your wrist is broken?"

Lux grimaced. "No, _I_ think my wrist is fine. _Cate_ thinks my wrist is broken."

The nurse frowned. "Dr. Cooper will be in shortly."

Lux stared at the floor. She could feel Cate's gaze on her. She almost felt bad. Almost.

She knew Cate was trying to do what was right for Lux, but Lux knew all too well what was about to happen. It had happened before, but Lux had never cared one way or the other in the past. Now she was filled with dread and powerless to stop the inevitable.

A middle-aged woman with frizzy brown hair entered the room. She smiled brightly at Lux. "Hi Lux! I'm Dr. Cooper," she said. She sounded unusually happy and that only infuriated Lux more.

"Hi," Lux said quietly.

Dr. Cooper approached Lux. She studied the teen's wrists and instantly noticed the left wrist was swollen. "Which wrist hurts?"

Lux rolled her eyes, knowing it was written on the file in Dr. Cooper's hands. "Neither."

Cate stared at Lux. "It's her left wrist."

"Can I see? I promise, I'll be gentle," Dr. Cooper said brightly.

Lux held her left arm up wordlessly.

Dr. Cooper began feeling the bone. "Let me know if it hurts," she told Lux.

Cate and Baze watched Lux, as did Dr. Cooper. Dr. Cooper touched part of Lux's wrist that she knew would hurt, but the teenager betrayed no sign of pain. Dr. Cooper frowned. "Does this hurt?"

Lux gritted her teeth and shook her head. She'd learned at a young age not to cry out when she was in pain.

"I'm going to have Nancy take you to get x-rays." Dr. Cooper nodded at the nurse. "Do you want your parents to go with you?"

Lux shook her head. She looked up at Cate and Baze with tears in her eyes. "Bye."

Cate frowned. She and Baze exchanged a glance. "We'll be right here waiting for you."

Lux knew better. She fought back tears as she followed the nurse.

* * *

"Ms. Cassidy? Mr. Bazile?"

Cate and Baze looked up in surprise. Cate spoke first, "Yeah?"

"I'm Detective Elliot Turner and this is my partner, Amber Benson. We'd like to talk to you about your daughter."

Cate nodded slowly.

"What happened this afternoon?" Amber asked.

Cate looked down. "Lux was in a car accident."

"Were all three of you in the car?" Amber asked.

"No, it was, uh, just Lux and me," Baze replied. He grinned cockily at the female detective.

"And Lux was the only one who got hurt?" Elliot asked skeptically.

Baze nodded sheepishly.

"Who was driving?" Elliot asked.

"I was." Baze stared at the floor.

Elliot smiled slightly. "She was in the passenger seat. Can you show me what happened upon impact?"

Baze stared at the detective blankly. "Uh?"

"Was your daughter thrown forward? Were the airbags deployed? Did she hit the windshield?" Elliot said.

"Yeah, she was thrown forward. The, uh, airbags weren't deployed. She didn't hit the windshield. She hit the, uh, door," Baze mumbled. He was surprised at how well he remembered exactly what had happened. He pictured his kid holding her wrist helplessly and grimaced.

"She hit the door? That's how she hurt her wrist?" Elliot asked skeptically.

"Yeah." Baze nodded, raking a hand through his hair.

Elliot smiled slightly. "So, from the passenger seat, she hit her left wrist on the door that was to her right?"

Baze swallowed. He looked at Cate helplessly. "Nah." He shook his head. "She was driving," he admitted with fear in his eyes. Surely he wouldn't lose his kid over one mistake? He couldn't lose her.

"Was she driving all the other times she got hurt?" Elliot demanded.

Baze frowned. "What other times?"

"OK. What's going on?" Cate said desperately.

"Lux's x-rays show signs of long-term physical abuse," Amber said.

"She has a long history of _accidents_," Elliot added.

"Yeah, many of which she was never brought to the hospital for. She has broken bones that didn't heal correctly because she was never treated!" Amber said angrily.

Tears stung Cate's eyes. "We didn't hurt her," she managed, her voice thick with tears. Even as the words left her mouth, she knew they weren't true. They may not have physically hurt their daughter, but Lux had been hurting for years because of her.

Baze covered his mouth with his hand. He felt like he was going to be sick. Who could hurt his little girl? His hands balled into fists. He wanted nothing more than to get his hands on the jerks that had hurt Lux. "We would never hurt her."

"Evidence says otherwise," Amber shot back.

"No, you don't understand!" Cate cried out. She opened her mouth to explain, but the words stuck in her throat.

"Cate, she gave Lux up for adoption. She just came back into our lives," Baze explained. "Her foster parents, they're the ones who hurt her."

"Fern," Cate managed.

Baze nodded. "You can call her social worker, Fern, if you don't believe us." He pulled Fern's business card from his pocket and handed it to Elliot.

Elliot nodded. He excused himself to the hall to make the call.

"Where's Lux?" Cate asked.

"Your daughter's fine," Amber assured her.

No, she wasn't, Cate knew. Not even close. The teenager had a broken wrist. It was no wonder Lux didn't flinch when Dr. Cooper examined her. She was used to being hurt, Cate thought dully.

Cate remembered her conversation with Lux the day before. She now understood why Lux had gotten so angry when Cate brought up her past. Cate swallowed hard. She didn't blame Lux for not forgiving her. She didn't forgive herself.

"Where is she?" Cate demanded.

Elliot returned to the room. He inclined his head slightly. The motion was enough for Amber to know their story had checked out.

"According to Fern, Lux has been in and out of seven different foster homes," Elliot said. "I spoke with Lux. She confirmed their version of events this afternoon. She also said her parents have never laid a hand on her."

Lux sat on the examination table listlessly, staring at the purple cast that covered her left wrist. She couldn't tell if the detective had believed her or not. She didn't know if it made any difference. One way or another, she was probably going back to foster care. The detectives would either believe Cate and Baze had been abusing Lux or that Baze let Lux drive without a license. They weren't going to let Lux stay with the only two people who had ever acted like they wanted her. The only two people who had never touched her.


End file.
